Islamic Liberation Theology: Qur'anic Hermeneutics for the Challenges of the Modern Age

Abstract

This paper is both an overview of liberation theology as developed in modern Christian theology in the West and an explanation of Islamic liberation theology from a socio-economic and theological perspective, excerpted from the Qur’an and its hermeneutics. Islam has, since its inception, through the injunctions of the Qur’an and the traditions of the Prophet Muhammad, liberated human beings from all sorts of sufferings and revived their dignity from social scourges. Islam, by its initial teachings, denounced ignorance and socio-economic injustice and then promoted knowledge, wisdom, justice, equality, respect, and fairness. All such teachings regarding liberation from all sorts of socio-economic sufferings and oppressions are clearly mentioned and their solution described in the Qur’an and in the traditions of the Prophet Muhammad. Classical Islamic theology in only its metaphysical form has been criticised by progressive Muslims because it does not imply human liberation in worldly life. This paper also discusses liberation theology in Islam through its sociological, ontological, epistemological and axiological perspectives and as many have also been propagated with respect to Islamisation. It also addresses the modern issues and challenges of cultural globalisation or the Westernisation of science in view of new dialectical theology (kalam e jadid) and proposes de-Westernisation of academic culture as an integral part of Muslim’s liberation in modern age.